Judge dismisses effort to halt student loan forgiveness plan
A federal judge in St. Louis has dismissed an effort by six Republican-led states to block the Biden administration’s plan to forgive student loan debt for tens of millions of Americans. U.S. District Judge Henry Autrey wrote in the ruling on Thursday that because the six states failed to establish they had standing, “the Court lacks jurisdiction to hear this case.” Suzanne Gage, spokeswoman for Nebraska Attorney General Doug Peterson, says the states will appeal. The other states involved are Missouri, Arkansas, Iowa, Kansas and South Carolina. Democratic President Joe Biden announced in August that his administration would cancel up to $20,000 in education debt for huge numbers of borrowers.
Pentagon seeks to reassure service members on access to abortion
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin issued a directive Thursday meant to reassure military service members that the Supreme Court ruling overturning Roe v. Wade would not leave troops without access to abortions in states where the procedure had been banned. The Pentagon will provide travel funds and other support for women who seek abortions but who are based in states where the procedure is illegal, the dire ctive says. It also essentially tells commanders not to ask too many questions when women request leave for reproductive health care reasons. Austin directed the services to implement the changes by the end of the year.
Graham must testify in Georgia elections inquiry, court rules
A federal appeals court ruled Thursday that Sen. Lindsey Graham must appear before the special grand jury that is investigating efforts by former President Donald Trump and his allies to overturn Trump’s election loss in Georgia, although the court set limits on the kinds of questions Graham could be asked. The ruling means that Graham, R-S.C., at some date after the Nov. 8 midterm elections, will most likely have to travel to the Fulton County courthouse in Atlanta to answer questions about phone calls he made to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger in the weeks after the 2020 election.
Drought, fire risk to stay high during third La Niña winter
Federal weather officials say drought and wildfire risks will remain elevated in the western states while warmer than average temperatures will greet the Southwest, Gulf Coast and East Coast this winter. Officials with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said Thursday that La Niña, a weather pattern characterized by cold ocean temperatures in the equatorial Pacific Ocean, is returning for a rare third winter. That means December, January and February are likely to bring drier than average conditions across the southern states and wetter than average weather for areas including the Great Lakes and Pacific Northwest. Officials say wildfires will remain a risk.
Truss quits, but UK’s political and economic turmoil persist
British Prime Minister Liz Truss quit Thursday after a tumultuous and historically brief term in which her economic policies roiled financial markets and a rebellion in her political party obliterated her authority. Truss became the third Conservative prime minister to be toppled in as many years, extending the instability that has shaken Britain since it broke off from the European Union and leaving its leadership in limbo as the country faces a cost-of-living crisis and looming recession. Financial markets were soothed, but bitterly divided Conservative Party lawmakers have just a few days to agree on a successor — or face yet another leadership contest.
Russian, Ukrainian troops gird for major battle in Kherson
Russian and Ukrainian troops appear to be girding for a major battle over the strategic southern industrial port city of Kherson. That’s in a region where Russian President Vladimir Putin has declared martial law, after illegally annexing it. Fighting and evacuations were reported in the region as Moscow tried to pound the invaded country into submission with more missile and drone attacks on critical infrastructure. Putin declared martial law in the Kherson, Luhansk, Donetsk and Zaporizhzhia regions on Wednesday in an attempt to assert Russian authority in the annexed areas as he faced battlefield setbacks, a troubled troop mobilization and increasing domestic and international criticism and sanctions. Ukrainian forces mounted 15 attacks on Russian military strongholds in Kherson.
Report: Elon Musk plans to cut 75% of Twitter workforce
Elon Musk plans to lay off most of Twitter’s workforce if and when he becomes owner of the social media company. That’s according to a report by The Washington Post. The report says Musk told prospective investors in his Twitter purchase that he planned to cut nearly 75% of San Francisco-based Twitter’s employee base of 7,500 workers, leaving the company with a skeleton crew. Twitter and a representative for Musk attorney Alex Spiro did not immediately respond to messages seeking comment. Already, experts, nonprofits and even Twitter’s own staff have warned that pulling back investments on content moderation and data security could hurt Twitter and its users.
Shetland is cut off from the world after undersea cable breaks
Shetland, the Scottish archipelago that lies across the sea from Norway and more than 100 miles north of mainland Britain, was already remote. It became even more so Thursday, officials said, when an underwater cable broke, cutting off communications for the thousands of people who call the islands home. Just after midnight, a fishing vessel likely damaged an underwater cable connecting Shetland to the Scottish mainland, said Páll Vesturbú, head of infrastructure for Faroese Telecom, a company that both owns and operates the affected submarine fiber optic cable network.
By wire sources
